AoT: Broken Serenity
by Ratchen
Summary: Sojin (OC) has done his time in the Corps. He fought with heart, healed his teammates, and worked to the best of his abilities. Now that peace has finally been attained, he simply wants to live a happy life and pursue his crush, Eren. Unfortunately, peace can only last so long, in love and war. **YAOI pairing.**
1. Chapter 1

The smell of autumn foliage filled the air, the sweet scent of leaves drifting past Sojin's nose. The twenty-year-old inhaled deeply, pausing to look around and rub his short, black hair. A rather dense forest stood in front of him, a sight quite rare inside of the walls. A slight smile lit up the boy's face as he took in the scenery and cheerful chirping of birds. His Survey Corps uniform felt a lot more comfortable when worn in nature. Sojin had come to the forest with the intent of escaping the noisy city of Shiganshina. Although the town had been all but destroyed ten years earlier, the heroes of the Survey Corps had managed to finally patch up the wall and dispatch the titans from the area. After the district had finally been cleared, the citizens who were brave enough to return — many who had been soldiers in the Survey Corps — immediately set to work on rebuilding Shiganshina from the ground up. By the time they had finished, the small district had become even more bustling than it had been prior to the fall of the wall. Sojin sighed, taking a seat on a tree stump and staring at the birds in the trees. He wasn't sure whether the sudden surge in popularity of his hometown was a blessing or a curse. His parents had both been taken from him during the initial attack on the city — his dad while attempting to save his mother and his mother while attempting to save him. Miraculously, the ten-year-old Sojin had managed to run to the port just in time to catch the last boat before it departed. While he certainly felt horrible about his parents' death, he had a sense of relief that he hadn't seen them killed. Even as a ten-year-old on the boat, he could tell the different mental state between those that had witnessed loved ones die and those who remained untainted.

A few years after the fall of Shiganshina, Sojin decided to try his hand at joining the army like most of the other orphans his age. While he failed to make it into the Military Police or demonstrate any notable fighting prowess, he had been at the top of his class in first aid and medical treatment, gaining him an important spot in the Survey Corps. Now that peace had finally returned to life inside the walls, the boy's missions were far fewer, giving him a chance to finally relax and catch up on life that he had missed as a child. Many of his friends from the Corps had also settled down in Shiganshina, making it a much happier place for Sojin. Speaking of friends, it had been a while since he had seen any of his teammates within the city walls. The boy wondered where they had gone off to, but his thoughts were cut short as the bird he had been watching darted from its perch, startled. The medic wheeled around to see what had caused the disturbance, his eyes widening in surprise upon seeing the newcomer.

"E-Eren?!" the boy stuttered, immediately rising to his feet — where he stood a good half of a head taller than the newcomer — and offering a salute to the legendary hero. Sojin had met the titan-shifter quite a few times on the battlefield, and even stitched him up once or twice. Unfortunately, their friendship had never had the chance to develop due to the urgency of the situations they met in. Eren, now twenty-two, was revered throughout the walls for his key role in helping expel the titans from inside the walls. Ever since joining the Survey Corps, the titan-shifter had been a role model and symbol of hope for Sojin as well. Not to mention, he was undeniably attractive. Sojin had had a crush on the hero since the first time they had met, yet had held it in for fear of what would happen if he confessed. This was exactly why the younger boy was so surprised to meet Eren in a quiet place like this on the outskirts of town. Upon seeing the younger boy salute, Eren's face turned to a glare as he approached Sojin and pushed his hand down from the saluting position.

"You know you don't have to salute me. I'm not anything special," the brown-haired boy stated, his face softening a bit as he let out a sigh. Sojin immediately felt apologetic, his face turning red. He had heard that the legendary boy was having trouble coping with his new found fame, preferring to return to regular life rather than life as a hero. The salute had just seemed like the natural thing to do. Trying to change the subject, Sojin glanced to the side nervously, then back at Eren.

"So…what brings you to the woods? I thought I was the only one who takes nature walks around here," Sojin replied, tilting his head to the side and offering a peppy smile in hopes of cheering the other boy up. Eren rubbed the back of his head and looked to the side, apparently deciding whether he would share the real reason why he had come to the woods.

"Well, normally I'd just say I was here for a walk, but I remember you being trustworthy from our battles together," Eren started, shifting his gaze back to the younger boy. "Honestly, I'm here trying to formulate a plan to take back Mikasa. Shiganshina is too noisy to think, so I came here to get some peace of mind."

Sojin's eyes widened in surprise, half due to the fact that Eren had actually revealed his real reason for coming and half because of that reason. The younger boy knew that Eren's childhood friend had been taken in one of the final battles of the war — heck, he had seen it with his own eyes. After slaying titan after titan, the poor girl's blades had worn dull, just as an aberrant titan had appeared. The giant had managed to catch Mikasa with its surprising speed, her blades now unable to easily slice through its fingers. Rather than trying to fight the rest of the troops, however, it had simply run off the way it had come from at a speed too fast for the cavalry to catch it. Sojin had been too shocked to even move at the time, simply gaping in horror at the simplicity of the capture. While news of the abduction spread through the town like wildfire, it had died down after the walls were reconstructed with many people dismissing Mikasa as dead. Eren, seeing the surprise on Sojin's face, scoffed and turned to the side to stare out into the distance.

"You don't think she's alive either? She's alive. There's no way she'd simply die like that," Eren stated, clenching his fists. Once again, Sojin felt apologetic for expressing his shock at the other boy's words.

"It's not that I don't think she's alive! I just had no idea that you were planning this," responded the younger boy.

"Well, I've only told a few people so far. The reason I told you is…well, we could use a medic," Eren stated, turning back to look into the younger boy's eyes. Even simple eye contact with the hero flustered the black-haired boy.

"A medic? But…but…" Sojin stuttered as he realized that Eren wanted him to join the retrieval squad. It seemed like just yesterday that he had finally been able to hang up his 3-D maneuver gear, and now he was being recruited for what would most likely be an even more dangerous mission?

"She's your teammate and played a huge part in restoring this peace. How could you even hesitate!" Eren exclaimed, raising his voice and taking a step closer to the medic. Uh-oh. This was the one character trait that the younger boy didn't particularly like about the hero. Due to his passion, Eren was prone to go off on anyone at anytime, never holding back his blunt remarks. Sojin took a step back, his foot hitting the tree trunk he had been sitting on, causing him to topple backwards. Eren, annoyance still filling his eyes, now towered over the younger boy and waited for a response. Admittedly, it hurt to have Eren's anger directed at him. He was supposed to be making Eren like him, not creating a rift. The main reason he had hesitated in his reply was that bringing Mikasa back most likely meant that the two of them would get together. Sojin widened his eyes in surprise. Was he really being this selfish? Was he going to let Mikasa die just so he could have a chance with Eren? How dishonorable. The younger boy opened his mouth to reply, but was cut off as a familiar voice filled the silent air.

"Oi, Eren! Leave our medic alone. You look like you're gonna rip him up instead of the titans, dumbass."

Sojin and Eren both glanced in the direction of the newcomer, surprised by the sudden appearance. The younger boy let out a sigh of relief as he saw Jean walking in their direction. Jean, also twenty-two, had gained much fame from his leadership during the battle to take back the wall. However, Sojin felt no nervousness about being in the boy's presence like he had with Eren. For some reason, Jean had always been especially nice to him, always going out of his way to make sure the medic was safe and happy. As the new boy finally reached their spot, he pushed Eren back a bit, creating some space between the titan-shifter and Sojin.

"What are you doing to this poor kid?" Jean asked, bending down to help Sojin back to his feet. Sojin thanked Jean and smiled, feeling a lot safer now that his friend had arrived.

"I was asking him to join our retrieval squad, horse-face. Stay out of it," Eren shot back, his annoyance towards Sojin now switching to Jean.

"You really need to learn how to keep your anger in check, you five-year-old. Throwing him to the ground isn't gonna make him want to join you," Jean stated, placing his hand on Sojin's shoulder.

"Oh, it's not like that!" Sojin exclaimed, not wanting to gain more negative feelings from his crush. "I just tripped over that tree trunk. He didn't do anything to me!"

The youngest boy hesitated for a moment before taking a deep breath.

"And….I want to join the retrieval squad! Jean, you're on it too, right? I'd like to have the chance to grow closer to all of you!" Sojin said with a smile, staring specifically at Eren. Hopefully, that would at least drop a subtle hint to the hero.

"Great! I knew you'd say yes. Just remember, this is going to be a battle, not a chance to just hang out. Anyway, I'll update you on details later. I'm gonna head back now," Eren stated, before turning and heading towards Shiganshina. Sojin's smile faded a bit. Why couldn't they just hang out together? Jean, noticing the younger boy's mood drop, wrapped his arm around Sojin's shoulders.

"Don't worry! He's just stressed about Mikasa right now. He's usually a lot nicer than this," Jean stated. Sojin glanced up at Jean who stood just a bit taller, a smile returning to his face.

"Thanks Jean! Always saving me, huh?" he replied, letting out a quiet laugh. "Why were you out here anyway?"

"Ah, I just saw Eren heading out this way and knew he was up to no good. So I tailed him!" Jean explained, finally removing his arm from the younger boy's shoulders. "Now that that's over, we should head back too! It's gonna get dark soon."

Sojin nodded in agreement, happy to have a friend to walk back with.

"Let's go!"


	2. Chapter 2

The pair arrived at the outskirts of Shiganshina just as the sunset began to fade into darkness. Sojin turned to Jean, a grin across his face. For some reason he felt particularly grateful towards the older boy today. He wasn't quite sure why he received such special treatment from Jean, having observed the twenty-two-year-old around others and noticing he never seemed to be very protective. In fact, he often seemed quite indifferent towards other people's problems.

"Why are you smiling so much?" Jean asked, turning to face the boy as a smirk graced his own face.

"I'm just wondering…you never seem to be that protective around others. So why —" Sojin began before getting cutoff mid-sentence.

"Jean!" came a female voice. The two boys turned to see Sasha dashing over to them. Sojin had heard stories about the girl's abilities, even fighting a titan with nothing more than a bow and arrow, but had never had the chance to meet her. Jean raised his hand to wave.

"What is it, Sasha?"

"I'm supposed to have patrol duty tonight, but I have plans to meet with my dad for dinner tonight. You know I can't really meet with him that often, so…..can you take my shift?" responded the peppy girl, clasping her hands together in a begging motion. "It's just making rounds around the outside of the gate! It won't take long at all! Please!"

Jean's friendly disposition immediately switched to a glare, his arm dropping from the wave and pointing into Sasha's face.

"I knew you had some favor you needed from me," he replied, sighing. "I should have ran in the other direction when I heard you calling."

"Please, Jean!" she begged again, bouncing up and down a bit. Sojin looked from Jean to Sasha, then back to Jean again.

"Jean, let's do it together! It'll be fun. I need to train a bit more in offensive battle anyway," Sojin stated, nodding to Sasha. The girl instantly rushed over to Sojin, clasping his hands then pulling him into a hug. Not releasing her grasp on the boy, she looked over to Jean.

"Who is this kid? I like him!" she exclaimed, pointing to the younger boy.

"That's Sojin, he's a medic. And you'd better let him go before you suffocate him," Jean replied, rolling his eyes. Sasha glared, then released Sojin, yet remained holding his hands.

"Sojin! Nice to meet you," she exclaimed, changing her grip to a handshake. "Thanks for convincing Jean! I'm sure we'll meet again in the future and I'll definitely pay you back! Now I'm off!"

Sasha finally released her grip and began jogging back down the street from which she'd came.

"Hey! I still never agreed to —" Jean tried to call after her, but it was too late. Jean turned to Sojin, a look of disapproval on his face. "You better not complain if it's too hard, kid!"

Sojin nodded and did a fake salute. "I'll do my best! Besides, just think of it as bonding time!"

Jean let out a sigh before placing his arm around Sojin's shoulders and leading him towards the patrol gate.

"Let's go…"

As the gate out of Shiganshina came into sight, Sojin broke out into an excited jog, stopping by the gate and patting it excitedly.

"I've never done night patrol before!" he exclaimed, a grin of excitement breaking out across his face.

Jean chuckled at the younger boy's excitement before heading into a building and emerging with four sheathed swords. He tossed two to Sojin who was now attaching his 3D maneuver gear.

"Night patrol usually doesn't encounter anything, but every once in a while, a titan pops up," explained the taller boy. "If for some reason we run into one, you should just run to where it's safe and let me and whoever else is coming handle it."

Sojin's grin slowly faded into a look of disdain.

"I can fight too, you know!" he exclaimed, waving one sword above his head. "Medics know how to fight! We just have more important things to focus on usually!"

Jean rolled his eyes. "Okay, okay. You can fight if we see one, which we won't. Just be careful."

Sojin nodded, then turned his attention to a figure approaching the pair. It was an older man — he seemed to be in his early 30's — with shoulder length black hair and a friendly disposition. The man raised his hand in greeting once Sojin noticed him.

"Ho there! I'm Seth. I'll be the third member of our patrol squad. I do this quite a bit, so just follow me and it'll be a piece of cake!" the man said, saluting. Both boys returned the salute and nodded their understanding.

"Nice to meet you! I'm Jean and this is Sojin," explained the brown-haired boy. "It's his first patrol, so he's…excitable. But he should be fine."

Sojin glared at Jean, but the older boy pretended to not see it.

"Alright, the sun has set, so let's go," Seth commanded, beckoning for the boys to follow as the gate creaked open half way. The trio ducked under and emerged on the other side. Sojin took a deep breath. Something about the air was different outside the walls — fresher. It was certainly one aspect of the open world that Sojin loved.

"Okay, all we have to do is head around the entire perimeter and we'll be done! Easy, right?" asked Seth, heading towards his left. Sojin nodded his agreement, following a few steps behind the older man, with Jean a few steps behind him.

After about a half hour of walking with no threats in sight, the youngest boy let out a groan of boredom. "There are literally no titans around here! This is just like a walk in the park!" he exclaimed, still following Seth.

"You should have your swords out, just in case," Seth instructed to which Sojin happily obliged. Wielding the two swords instantly made anything seem more exciting. The younger boy turned around to playfully taunt Jean.

"You heard him!" Sojin exclaimed at which Jean glared back. However, the boy's glare instantly changed to a look of horror a moment later as Sojin felt something warm splash onto his back.

"Eh?" the youngest boy asked, trying to figure out what had landed on him. Tapping a wet spot on his jacket with his hand, he looked at his palm that was now stained red. Sojin gasped in surprise. Blood?! As he turned around to see where Seth had gone, Jean grabbed the medic by his jacket collar and wrenched him to the left, throwing him to the ground.

"Jean! What are you—?!" Sojin exclaimed as the clang of metal filled the air. Glancing up from his position, he found Jean locking swords with a black-cloaked figure where Sojin had stood seconds before. The boy turned to look for Seth, but wished he hadn't. The older man lay face down on the earth, blood pooling from beneath him and seeping into his jet black hair. The man's black eyes stared emotionlessly back into Sojin's gaze. The boy tried to stifle his scream of horror.

"Wh-What's going on?!" Sojin exclaimed. The black-cloaked assailant was now targeting Jean, swinging back and forth with only a single sword. Still, it seemed like all Jean could do was defend himself against the man's swift strikes.

"Sojin! Go get help!" Jean exclaimed, deflecting strike after strike from the assassin. Sojin shook his head, panicking.

"We're too far away from the guard station!" he exclaimed, pulling himself to his feet. What was the best course of action?! Well, it seemed he only had one choice as of now: help Jean. The younger boy charged towards the assailant's back, winding his swords back for a powerful slice. He thought he heard the cloaked man let out a snicker, before his target dodging out of the way of the strike and distanced himself from the two boys.

"Sojin, get away from here! At least climb the wall or something!" Jean exclaimed, panting from exhaustion and glancing over at his younger partner. Sojin shook his head in refusal.

"Hm, well this will be easier than I thought," stated the cloaked man suddenly, letting out a louder laugh this time. "You are all members of the 'retrieval squad,' am I right?"

Sojin clenched his jaw, trying to get a better look at the man's face under the cloak's hood.

"Who the hell are you?" Jean asked, a mix of anger and panic in his voice. The man shook his head.

"Such a shame. I'll have disposed of two of your members before your operation even starts," he said, lifting his right arm and snapping. Instantly, a bolt of lightning shot down behind the man, blowing dust and earth upwards. Sojin let out a grunt, trying to stay on his feet and shield his eyes simultaneously. Once the falling rubble subsided, he peaked out, his heart skipping a beat upon seeing what stood before the pair.

"Sojin, listen to me. I'm serious this time. Run!"


	3. Chapter 3

Behind the cloaked man stood a huge, hungry-looking titan. Had he summoned it with just the snap of his fingers? In all of his time in the Corps, Sojin had never seen anything like that — and he had seen a lot of crazy abilities. Although he would normally argue to stay and fight, Jean's orders to retreat seemed to make sense this time. With both the titan and the absurdly quick assassin, the Survey Corps duo stood little chance at winning the battle. Just as the titan began to run towards the pair, Sojin turned to the wall, angling his maneuver gear upwards and let loose. The hookshots latched into the wall about thirty feet up and lifted the boy into the air just as the titan reached out for him. Sojin could feel the titan's giant finger graze his boot as he ascended — a narrow miss.

"Get to the top of the wall!" ordered Jean, who had also begun to climb the gigantic barrier. Sojin nodded, shooting his gear into an even higher spot on the wall and ascending further. This seemed to put the boy out of the reach of the titan, allowing him to take a quick breath. Gazing down, Sojin was not surprised to see that the cloaked man was no longer there. The younger boy just hoped that the enemy was not equipped with 3D maneuver gear. Unable to catch sight of the enemy, he narrowed his gaze as something caught his eye. Seth's belt! Attached to the man's belt were three flare shots. This would be a risky move, but without some backup, the duo would probably be dead anyway.

"Jean, keep going!" Sojin exclaimed as he unlatched his gear from the wall, falling nearly to the bottom before reshooting it and landing softly. The titan, who had previously turned its attention to Jean, finally noticed that it now had fresh prey on solid ground. Sojin broke into a dash for the dead man as the titan began to walk his way, its steps quaking the earth. Finally approaching Seth's body, Sojin knelt down, guilt for taking his deceased partner's equipment overwhelming him. Still, knowing he had no choice he steeled himself and quickly searched through the flares. Ah, purple! The emergency signal. As he worked to unhinge it from Seth's belt, he glanced over his shoulder to see how far back the titan was. Surprisingly close was his answer. The titan seemed to have gained more speed at the prospect of having something to eat. With one final tug, the flare gun finally came free. Sojin jumped over his comrade's corpse and backed away from the titan a bit more. The large creature suddenly came to a pause, looking down at the ground in front of it. The medic realized that it had just now spotted Seth's corpse — a free meal. As it bent down and picked the body up by one leg, Sojin considered firing the flare into its face in order to save his comrade's body, but decided against it. They definitely needed backup in this situation. Just as the boy lifted the flare gun and fired off a purple shot, the titan swallowed Seth whole. Through the illumination from the shot, Sojin tried to peer behind the titan and see if Jean was still climbing the wall or where he had gone, but couldn't make out his friends figure anywhere. Had he made it up the wall already?

Sojin shifted his thoughts back to the problem at hand. The titan, seemingly unsatisfied by its recent meal, had begun to move towards the medic once again. The twenty-year-old turned towards the wall and fired his maneuver gear, planning to simply get out of range of the titan. The shot made connection with the wall, beginning to pull Sojin up. However, the titan had grabbed the hookshot line, throwing the boy's ascent off course. The boy had seen this too many times in battle. A titan would grab a person's maneuver gear line, then simply pluck them up and drop them down their gullet. Sojin hesitated for a moment but knew he had only one option. The boy whipped out one of his swords and sliced down on the leather strap of the maneuver gear near his leg. The strap snapped instantly, freeing the boy from his equipment and sending him falling a few feet to the ground with a thud. The titan, seemingly unaware that its victim had escaped, opened its mouth wide and dropped the empty 3D gear in. This time, Sojin hadn't stayed to watch, dashing away from the titan at full speed.

"Shit!" he exclaimed, knowing that even a walking titan was faster than a sprinting human. Moments later, the earth shattering footsteps began once more. The boy continued to run, but a minute later, the titan had all but caught up. Wheeling around and whipping out his other sword, he turned to face the giant. There was no way he could win a battle against the titan — he was unable to reach its neck — but he could at least attempt to stall. As the titan slowly reached out for him, the boy sidestepped to his right, slashing up at the titan's fingers with all his might. Although he only managed to sever the tips, it was enough to evade the titan's grasp. Taking a deep breath, he charged forward in an attempt to get through the titan's legs and behind the creature. The large creature, distracted by its severed fingertips, reacted slowly allowing for the boy to swing one of his swords into its achilles heel. Sojin was dismayed when the creature didn't fall. Was his swing too weak? Before he could pull the blade out and try again, the titan lifted its foot, stomping down far too close for comfort. Sojin ditched his blade, running back towards the spot where Seth's body had once laid. What was taking the backup so long?! At least ten minutes had passed — the fact that the boy was still alive was quite impressive.

However, now with only a single sword and no maneuver gear, it seemed Sojin's luck had run out. As the titan reached out to grab him yet again, the boy attempted another sidestep. This time, though, he was less successful. The giant made contact with Sojin's forearm, latching onto it with surprising accuracy. There was a momentary pause as both the medic and the creature realized he had been caught. The titan, now happy — if titans could be happy — lifted its prey into the air. Sojin gazed around in panic for anyone that could help him as he dangled by his arm. Taking his free arm and sword he plunged it into the creature's finger, but once again the strike was too weak. As he released the sword, he realized he should have just cut his own arm off. Too late now.

Just as the creature opened its mouth to drop the boy in, a liquid exploded from the titan's eye. The giant roared in pain, dropping its prey to cover its apparently wounded eye. Unfortunately for Sojin, he had been dropped from about fifteen feet, and the landing was not too padded. The medic landed with a thud, pain shooting through his left leg. As he looked up to see what had injured the titan, he was shocked at who he saw. Christa?! The blonde girl had seemingly hookshotted the titan's eye and lifted herself to its nape, an extremely risky move. Although he didn't know many of the famed "top 10" students very well, Christa was one he had actually befriended almost immediately upon joining the army. At that time, the blonde girl had been a pacifist, so quiet that many never even knew she was there. However, by the end of the war, she had become just as adept at titan slaying as everyone else. Fortunately, her sweet demeanor had never disappeared. Sojin watched as she lifted her sword and effortlessly slashed through the titan's neck, instantly dispatching of it and lightly jumping from its shoulder right before it hit the ground.

"Christa?! They sent _you_ to the emergency zone?" Sojin asked, still slightly in shock. The girl approached, tilting her head to the side.

"Is it that surprising?" she asked, kneeling by the boy's side. Sojin shook his head.

"No, no! It's just…you'll always be an innocent little kid in my mind," the boy replied, smiling at the blonde. She laughed a bit before her face turned serious again.

"Are you hurt?" she questioned, patting the boy down for injuries.

"No! My ankle got messed up from the fall, though," he stated, trying to pull himself to his feet but failing. Christa stared at the boy's leg in concern.

"I don't think I can carry you back…but Eren should be here soon," informed the blonde. "I'll just defend you until he arrives."

Sojin wanted to hug the girl, but couldn't rise from his position. Her status as "angel of the Corps" was definitely true. He was glad to have her as one of his closest friends. The thought of friends suddenly reminded Sojin.

"Christa! Where's Jean?!" he asked, looking around in panic. The girl placed a hand on the boy's shoulder, trying to calm him down.

"Don't worry, Sojin! He made it to the top of the wall where we found him. From what I saw, he was sliced up a bit, but should be healed rather soon!" she replied, smiling at her friend.

"Oh, and he's the one who told me to come get you!" she added, sheathing her swords and taking a seat on the ground. "Well, now we'll just have to wait for Eren!"


	4. Chapter 4

The time passed rather peacefully, with the duo sitting facing away from the while to spot for titans. No signs of the creatures or the assassin allowed the duo to get bored enough to finally start gossiping.

"So, Christa, who do you like these days?" Sojin asked with an evil laugh. The blonde girl seemed completely taken aback by the question, looking from left to right in an attempt to avoid eye contact.

"Me? I don't like anyone! I mean I like everyone! But I don't like….you know what I mean!" she stuttered in reply, waving her arms up and down. Sojin laughed and nodded, feeling bad for causing the girl to freak out. Besides, the answer was an obvious one. Everyone in the Survey Corps knew that Christa loved Ymir and vice-versa, yet no one dared comment on the topic. As one of his better friends, Sojin wished that the blonde girl would just admit it to him so they could discuss the topic openly, but she didn't seem ready for that yet.

"Anyway, what about you? You must like someone if you're asking me, right?" asked Christa, softly. Sojin looked up in surprise at the question, not expecting the blonde girl to pry into his own life. The boy hesitated, buying time by pretending to think. How could he expect her to admit who she liked if he couldn't even do the same to her. Sojin had yet to tell anyone about his crush, but if there was anyone he could trust, it would be Christa.

"Well…" started the boy, looking into his friend's eyes as his heart rate increased. "You have to promise not to tell! Anyone!"

Christa seemed surprised by the fact that Sojin was actually considering telling her, but nodded her head.

"I like…" the boy began again, shutting his eyes from embarrassment. "I like Eren!"

As if on cue, a male voice pierced the air.

"Oi, Sojin!"

The boy turned his head to see none other than Eren running over to the pair, still a few yards away. Christa, still surprised by his answer, also turned to face the newcomer. Once she saw who it was, she looked back and forth from boy to boy then let out a quiet giggle. Sojin turned to her, eyes wide.

"Don't you dare say anything!" he hissed, flailing his arms. The girl nodded, promising to keep it a secret.

"Still…if you don't tell him, how is he ever even going to know?" she asked softly, tapping her head with her finger. Sojin shook his head furiously.

"He doesn't have to know!" he exclaimed, quite loudly. As Eren finally approached the pair, he looked at Sojin with a confused look.

"Doesn't have to know what?" he asked, kneeling down by the boy. Sojin's eyes widened as he realized the boy had heard him. He looked to Christa, who gave him an "uh-oh" look, then back to the older boy.

"Er, nothing! It's not important!" he exclaimed, shaking his head slightly. Eren gave him a look of suspicion, but then turned his attention to the boy's legs.

"Why didn't you guys just walk back? You're injured?" he asked. Sojin nodded his head, pointing to his left leg.

"I fell from the hand of a titan and landed awkwardly…but I don't think anythings broken," he replied. Eren looked surprisingly concerned for a moment, then turned his back to the younger boy, still kneeling.

"Get on. It's too far of a walk for you to just hop on one leg. Christa, help him," ordered the brown-haired boy. Christa nodded to Eren, heading behind him and helping Sojin to his feet. The blonde raised her eyebrows and winked at the younger boy, apparently excited about the piggy-back opportunity. Sojin shot her a glare as he wrapped his arms around Eren's neck, being hoisted into the air. Christa let out a giggle at the boy's embarrassment, but quickly quieted down as Sojin's eyes shot daggers at her.

"What's so funny, Christa?" asked Eren, turning to look at the blonde.

"Funny? Nothing's funny!" she exclaimed, as she moved in front of the two boys and pointed towards the wall. "Let's go!"

By the time the trio reached the gate, the sun was just beginning to rise, its orange rays peeking over the expansive fields. The sunrise was a lot different when viewed outside of the walls with nothing to obstruct one's view. As sunrays glazed over Sojin's eyelids, the boy blinked a few times, then shot to attention.

"W-was I sleeping?!" the boy exclaimed, realizing he had dozed off on the older boy's shoulder. "I'm sorry! That's so embarrassing…"

Christa turned around, walking backwards now.

"Awww, it was cute! And Eren even told me not to wake you up," she exclaimed, obviously pointing fun at the younger boy. "How cute!"

Sojin felt his face flush as they finally made it to the gate.

"Alright, can you hop from here?" Eren asked, ignoring Christa's comments. Sojin affirmed, then apologized for making the titan-shifter carry him the whole way.

"Don't apologize. You were only in danger because you joined my squad," Eren replied, letting Sojin down then wrapping the younger boy's arm around his shoulder for support. "Alright, let's get you checked out."

Sojin nodded and couldn't repress a smile as he hopped next to Eren towards the infirmary. Upon reaching the door, Christa stopped and turned to the pair.

"Well…I think I'm going to go home now," she stated, smiling. Sojin instantly felt guilty seeing how tired the girl looked. Unlike him, she hadn't slept at all the whole night. "I'll see you guys later!"

"Thank you, Christa! For saving me and everything! Let's discuss you-know-what later," he replied, waving to the girl. Still holding on to Eren, the duo entered the infirmary where a nurse instantly rushed over, prying Sojin from the titan-shifter.

"Oh dear, are you injured? Let's get you into a bed and all checked out!" she exclaimed, pulling the boy away from Eren before he could even manage a proper goodbye. As he tried to wave goodbye, he thought he saw a small smile on Eren's face — a rarity these days. Did the hero enjoy his company, too? Sojin's moment of happiness was interrupted as he was placed onto a soft bed while the nurse went to look for supplies. Glancing to his right, he was surprised to find himself staring straight at Jean in the bed next to him. The other boy was fast asleep, breathing softly. Examining him, he was surprised to see the amount of bandages upon the other boy's body. Sojin pushed himself up to a sitting position to get a better look, worried that the injuries might be worse than they appeared.

"Please lie down!" came the nurses voice as she returned to the room. "We don't want you to strain anything when you could be injured."

Sojin obeyed, slowly falling back onto the bed.

"He's alright…right?" Sojin asked, pointing towards Jean worriedly. The nurse hesitated for a moment, causing Sojin's heartrate to increase.

"He should be fine. He had many cuts and a few fairly deep gashes, but thankfully he made it up the wall so we could get him here quickly," the nurse replied, brushing her grey hair out of her face. "Anyway, it's time to inspect you now, so please just lay back and relax."

Half an hour later, the nurse finally put away her tools and turned to the boy with a smile.

"Ah, you're quite lucky! You only seem to have some bruising in your leg, not even a broken bone! A fall from the height of a titan could have been deadly," she informed him. "Now, I think you should get some rest. Feel free to sleep here until you're ready to leave."

Sojin thanked the woman as she left the room, relieved that his injuries were only minor. The boy glanced over at Jean once more before drifting off to sleep himself. Unlike the peaceful sleep he had had earlier, this time the boy had nightmares. Sojin dreamed that Christa hadn't arrived in time, the titan dropping him into its mouth. Just before the giant's teeth came together, the boy woke with a start. Jean, who had been sitting on the boy's bedside jolted at the boy's sudden action, causing Sojin to roll off the bed in surprise. Jean rushed around to the other side of the bed, apologizing profusely, and helped Sojin back up.

"Oww…give some notice if you're gonna be staring at me while I sleep," Sojin teased, sitting back down on the bed. Jean glared, but took a seat next to him.

"Are you okay?" he asked, scanning the boy. "I'm sorry I left you with the titan. I should've gone back to save you."

Sojin shook his head. "No way. From the looks of it, your opponent was even more dangerous than a titan. I was afraid you wouldn't make it!"

Jean scoffed, a grin spreading across his face. "Psh, I always make it. That's what you've gotta learn!"

Sojin laughed, but was cutoff by the room's door swinging open, two military police entering through it. The officers, both older than Jean and Sojin, looked from boy to boy.

"Which one of you is Sojin?" asked one of the men, a sharp black goatee protruding from his chin. Sojin looked at Jean, confused, then raised his hand.

"We're going to need you to come with us. Some reports about your activity last night have raised some questions," the man stated, pulling the boy from the bed. "And we'll need you to wear these."

The man pulled shackles from his pocket, turning the boy around to lock his hands behind his back. Jean immediately rose from the bed, objecting.

"What are you talking about?! He was doing patrol with me! If anything, he was protecting the walls!" Jean exclaimed, anger filling his eyes. Sojin shook his head at the boy.

"Jean, no! It's okay, I'll just go with them!" the medic stated, trying to calm his friend down.

"No! I'm sick of these asses doing nothing but locking up our allies!" Jean exclaimed, taking a step forward. In the blink of an eye, the non-goatee policeman delivered a swift kick to one of Jean's bandaged areas causing the boy to stagger back screaming in pain.

"Hey!" Sojin exclaimed, struggling to get free and help Jean. The violent policeman moved towards the boy, seemingly ready to deliver another kick, but Sojin lunged forward, pulling the other policeman behind him and delivered a strong bite to the guard's shoulder in a last resort effort. The guard yelped in pain before elbowing the boy in the face. Sojin stumbled backwards, pain shooting through his face, but happy to see the guard had at least turned his attention from Jean.

"These brats…" muttered the policeman who had gotten bitten. "Let's go."

The man grabbed Sojin by the collar, dragging him from the room with no concern for his injured leg. The medic could see Jean clenching his teeth, still holding the area that had been kicked.

"I'll get you out of this!" Jean exclaimed before the guards slammed the door shut.


	5. Chapter 5

Darkness consumed Sojin's vision as he sat strapped to a chair in a pitch black room. What the hell was going on? He had taken up Sasha's offer to do night patrol in an attempt to show kindness, but so far it had only caused him trouble. Sojin had at least expected the Military Police to hold a normal interrogation…but why had they placed him alone in this dark room? A shiver ran down the medic's spine. Were they going to torture him for information? Sojin had never been great at pain tolerance and the very idea of undergoing torture shook him to the core. Not to mention, he couldn't offer up the information they wanted for he actually didn't know it himself. Sojin wriggled his arms that were strapped behind the chair, trying to see if there was a way out of his bonds. He then reconsidered. If he tried to escape, the guards would become even more suspicious of him. Letting out a sigh, the boy draped his head forwards and continued to wait. Finally, half an hour later, the door to the room opened then closed. The boy's eyes, which had adjusted to night vision by this point, were able to make out a single figure entering the room.

"Look kid, I'm with the Military Police. If you don't wanna make this difficult, just answer the questions honestly," he stated coldly. Sojin wanted to reply that he had every intention to answer honestly, but held his tongue. The man gave off the vibe that he wouldn't take any backtalk, especially from a prisoner.

"So what exactly were you doing last night?" the man began.

"My friend Sasha — I'm sure you know of her — asked Jean and I to take her shift for night patrol! We agreed to help her and tried to do our duty but then we got into this situa—" Sojin tried to reply, before being cut off.

"Reports from the top of the wall say they saw a titan appear out of thin air. Do you know anything about this?" the man asked, circling around the boy's chair.

"No! We were fighting a cloaked man and he summoned it. I'm just as shocked as you are!" Sojin exclaimed, a hint of desperation in his voice.

"Hm…reports also say that you simply stood by watching our guardsman, Seth, get consumed," the man replied. "Is this true?"

"There was nothing I could do! He was already killed and I had no maneuver gear! And if these people are 'reporting' this, then why didn't _they_ come down to help us?!" Sojin exclaimed, struggling in his chair. The man delivered a sharp kick to the boy's stomach, knocking the wind out of him.

"I ask the questions here," the man replied, obviously having been waiting for a chance to strike the boy. "Now, some reports state that it was _you_ who summoned the titan, causing Jean and the other man to flee."

"How could that be true?! The titan was chasing me! It would have eaten me if it wasn't for Christa!" Sojin shot back, glaring in the darkness. "Besides, don't I get a witness that was actually there?!"

The guard stopped pacing, turning to stare at Sojin. "I told you I ask the questions here. But since I'm a nice guy, I even brought in someone to testify for you."

He turned to the door and beckoned for someone to come in. Sojin squinted, trying to make out who the newcomer was. As the testifier came closer, the boy was elated to see that it was none other than Eren. Although the hero hadn't really been there during the battle, at least he would side with him. Sojin opened his mouth to greet the titanshifter, but the guard beat him to it.

"Hello Eren!" the guard exclaimed, saluting the boy. Eren nodded to him then turned to face Sojin. The younger boy waited with anticipation for Eren to order his release, but the room was instead filled with an awkward silence.

"Sojin…" Eren began. The captive boy immediately felt his heart drop. Why wasn't Eren helping him out? What was with this hesitation?! "While I'm sure you didn't do anything, I wasn't really there at the time."

"But then…why are you here?" Sojin asked, beginning to panic. The guard moved forward, apparently wanting to deliver some more "discipline," but Eren held his arm out blocking the way.

"It's just that one of your earlier comments was kind of….incriminating," began Eren. "Remember when I was running to meet you and Christa? You stated, 'He doesn't have to know!', right? And then you wouldn't tell me when I asked."

Sojin's jaw dropped as his heart pounded in his chest. _That_ was what this was all about? Eren thought he was talking about summoning titans or something? Anger overtook the younger boy.

"First of all, that had nothing to do with titans! Second of all, do you have to know every secret that's ever spoken?! I was just telling Christa something!" he shot back at Eren, engulfed in anger. How could his crush be questioning him like this?

"Oi! Watch your mouth, you little brat!" the guard exclaimed from behind Eren. The hero let out a sigh, then turned to face the guard.

"Er, can we just have a one on one talk for a moment?" he asked, turning back to face Sojin. The guard's face turned bitter, but he obliged, leaving the interrogation room.

"Eren, what the hell! How could you do this?! Do you really think I'm trying to keep a secret about the titans from you?" the boy exclaimed, letting out more of his emotion now that the guard was gone.

"I don't think so…but I can't be sure. Especially since it was Historia you were talking to. Either way, just tell me what you told her and we can just forget this," Eren stated. He paused for a moment before adding, "I've been betrayed quite a few times…so please don't take this personally."

Sojin stared at the ground at a loss for words. A moment of silence passed before he looked back up at Eren.

"You want to know what I told her?" he asked Eren, rage and anxiety mixing together within him. He had never planned to confess to the older boy, but now cornered like this, it seemed he had no choice. "I told her…that I have a crush on you! But that sure as hell isn't true anymore!"

Eren's eyes widened upon hearing the boy's words. Again, the room was filled with silence as Sojin glared at the floor, refusing to make eye contact with the brown-haired boy.

"You…? Me…?" Eren asked, seemingly trying to confirm what he had heard. Sojin looked up from his chair, his face red with embarrassment.

"There. You know the secret, are you happy now?" Sojin asked sarcastically, struggling against his rope bonds. "Now untie me!"

Eren, still speechless, moved around to the back of the chair to untie the younger boy.

"I'm sorry…!" Eren stated quietly as the rope came loose. Sojin rose from the chair, heading for the exit of the room, but Eren grabbed his wrist. "Wait! I didn't know!"

Sojin wrenched his arm free from the boy's grasp and continued towards the exit. "Yeah, that's the point of a secret," he replied, storming out of the room. The guard waiting outside the door opened his mouth to object, but Sojin cut him off.

"Go ask Eren if you want to know!" he exclaimed, continuing out of the building. Once in the street, his anger finally began to die down. The boy walked forwards, eyes on the ground, running through the whole ordeal in his head.

"That bastard…" he muttered to himself. Sojin let out a sigh. The worst part was that he still could feel some affection towards the hero. Love was a powerful force. Balling up his fists, he continued forwards. It would be far too embarrassing to face him again, that was for sure.

"Oof!" Sojin exclaimed as he collided with something. Looking up, he saw that it was a rather old man — perhaps in his mid-fifties — with a odd, green glass eye that clashed with his natural blue one.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" exclaimed the boy. "Are you alright?"

The man stared at him for a few seconds, but offered no reply before continuing on down the road. Sojin rolled his eyes as he also continued towards his house. What was with people these days? Upon reaching his front door, the boy decided to continue down the road, wanting to pay Jean a visit. If he stayed at home by himself, his worries would consume him. After a short ten-minute walk, the boy arrived at Jean's front door and knocked softly. No answer. After a few more moments of waiting, he turned to leave, his mood falling.

"Sojin! Looking for me?" came Jean's voice as he waved from down the street. The younger boy's face lit up as he jogged to Jean.

"Jean! What are you doing right now? Let's eat!" Sojin exclaimed, tugging on his friend's jacket.

"Woah, woah! Fine, I haven't eaten yet anyway," Jean replied, ruffling the younger boy's hair. "I sent Eren to testify for you! I see he got you out alright."

"Er…not quite. I have something to tell you," Sojin began, leading Jean towards the usual soup house they ate at. The boys entered and chose a table as the diner's owner came over. Without hesitating, both ordered their usual soup and thanked the waitress.

Turning his attention back to Jean, Sojin's smile faded a bit. "Jean…I'm quitting the retrieval squad."

The older boy gave him a quizzical look before objecting. "Sojin, I know yesterday was scary, but that's no reason to quit! You're our only medic!"

Sojin slammed his hand on the table in annoyance. "I'm not quitting because I'm scared! There's another reason!"

"Another reason? What could that be?" Jean questioned, surprised by the boy's sudden outburst.

"I…can't tell you. But trust me, it's a good one," Sojin replied, leaning back in his chair and folding his arms.

"Sojin…the mission starts tomorrow. There's no way we can find another good medic in time," Jean stated, shaking his head in disapproval. "And didn't you say you wanted to spend time with Eren and I?"

The mention of Eren made the boy wince a bit, but he held his tongue. However, Jean was right. It was a little too late to back out now, even with this incident. The boy let out a sigh.

"Fine, you're right. I'll stay on the squad," he replied, clearly unhappy with the decision.

"Attaboy! And I'm sure whatever your reason is, it won't be that bad," Jean cheered, trying to comfort the younger boy.

"Right…" Sojin replied as the soup was brought out to them.


	6. Chapter 6

_Thump. Thump._ Sojin rolled over in his bed, trying to ignore the noise and continue sleeping. _Thump._ The black-haired boy cracked his eyes open, confused as to what was creating the sound. Sojin lived in a small home without any roommates which usually made for a silent environment. The boy rolled back over to face his window coming face to face with a cat. The cat let out a cute "meow" then pawed at the window. _Thump. Thump._ Sojin's face lit up as he pulled himself to a sitting position. He had always had a love of animals and this cat was especially cute. Unlocking the hinges, he hoisted the window up, allowing the cat to jump in and onto his bed.

"Wah! So cute! Do you need something to eat?" he asked, tilting his head while staring at his new feline friend. He nodded to himself and clambered out of bed as the cat explored his room. Entering his tiny kitchen, he pulled out some leftover fish that he had cooked a few days earlier, placing it on the floor.

"Hey! Kitty! Come eat this!" the boy exclaimed, pointing to the food. To his surprise, the cat actually came when called, its eyes lighting up upon seeing the meal. The feline devoured the fish, then jumped onto the counter next to Sojin's clock, purring happily. Sojin laughed to himself, looking from the cat to the clock. 8:00 A.M. The boy instantly stopped laughing, realizing what time it was. He was supposed to meet the rest of the retrieval squad in an hour! The boy ran back to his room and propped the window open.

"Here, kitty! You can leave when you're ready! I'd keep you but I don't know when — er, I don't know _if_ I'll be back," he stated, correcting himself. Sojin snatched his uniform from his closet, quickly switching into it and running to the bathroom to finish getting ready. As he brushed his teeth in front of the mirror, his eyes narrowed.

"Just ignore him! Pretend like nothing happened between you two! It'll be fine," he sputtered as he continued to brush his teeth. "Besides, it's his loss."

Sojin spat and looked back in the mirror, styling his short hair. "I mean, I'm just as good looking. No! I'm better looking!"

In the mirror's view, the boy could see the cat staring at him and let out a laugh.

"I sound crazy, don't I?" he asked the animal, exiting the bathroom and patting it on the head. "Well, thanks for starting my morning off happily! Wish me luck on this mission!"

The cat meowed in reply, hopping down from its perch to follow Sojin to the front door. The boy gave the feline one last glance.

"You can stay here anytime! Look after my house for me while I'm gone!" he exclaimed, grinning and making a peace sign before shutting the door.

Sojin reached the meeting point with only a minute to spare, panting from the run. Glancing around, he was happy to see familiar faces. Christa and Jean both waved to him to which he grinned in reply. Eren stood talking to Armin, seemingly mapping out the logistics. Sojin had met the blonde boy only once, but he had enjoyed the conversation they shared. Still, he didn't gaze over at the two for long, not wanting to make eye contact with Eren. Sojin turned his attention back to his friends, approaching them with a wave.

"So, it's only us five?" he asked Christa. The blonde girl nodded her head.

"For now. Ymir might join us later, depending on how difficult this turns out to be," she replied with a smile. The two continued chatting for a few minutes with Jean joining in as well, before Eren called.

"Guys, here's the plan!" Eren exclaimed, turning to face the other three with Armin at his side. "Jean, you'll be with me if we have to face any titans. I'm pretty sure we're the most skilled out of the five of us. Christa and Armin, you two create distractions if we encounter more than one titan at a time. Feel free to engage if you think you can take one down."

The titanshifter paused, turning to Sojin. The black-haired boy shifted his gaze towards Jean, refusing to connect eyes with the squad leader.

"Sojin, you don't fight. You're the medic so we can't have anything happen to you. Just stay behind everyone else," Eren stated before turning his attention back to the other members. "Everyone clear?"

Christa, Jean, and Armin all nodded enthusiastically, while Sojin reluctantly voiced his understanding.

"Oh…and due to the Military Police requesting more cavalry, we only have three horses for this mission," Eren stated, a hint of annoyance in his voice. "That means two pairs and one individual. Christa, I figure you'll be more comfortable on your own horse since you're our only girl. Jean and Armin, pair up. Sojin, you're with me."

The youngest boy coughed in surprise at the leader's orders. Like hell would he ride a horse with Eren. He finally turned to face the brown-haired boy, glaring.

"I think it'd be better if I shared with Jean," he stated, pointing at his friend. "We've been on more missions together."

Eren shook his head in disapproval. "This formation has strategic advantages. You're with me," he stated.

Sojin felt anger begin to bubble up inside, replying with annoyance, "I really think it would be better if we weren't together…"

Christa and Armin stared at the two boys, confusion crossing their faces, but not daring to interrupt.

"I'm the leader and I say you're with me. It's final!" Eren retorted, raising his voice.

"Calm down, Eren. Who can blame him for not wanting to be with a hot-head like yourself?" Jean stated, sarcastically.

"Stay out of this, Jean," Eren fired back, obviously trying to suppress his anger. Armin stepped forward between the three boys.

"Guys, we haven't even started the mission. Stop fighting!" the blonde boy stated, looking back and forth between the three. "Sojin, will you please just go with Eren?"

Not wanting to start an argument with Armin, Sojin let out a sigh.

"Fine…" he muttered, walking over to where the horses stood while Jean and Eren squabbled in the background. Christa and Armin mounted their horses, Armin bringing his over to Jean and finally ending the argument. Eren walked over to where Sojin stood, mounting the horse before holding a hand out to help the medic up. Ignoring the gesture, Sojin grabbed the saddle and hoisted himself onto the animal behind Eren.

"Hold on," Eren stated as the horse began to trot forwards. Sojin did his best to stay mounted without holding onto the boy in front of him, but could only maintain it for so long. Begrudgingly, he wrapped his arms around Eren as they picked up speed, heading towards the gate.

"Don't think I forgive you," he stated into the boy's ear. Even from his position behind the older boy, Sojin could see Eren's mood go sour.

"I said I'm sorry. How was I supposed to know?!" Eren shot back. Sojin began to retort, but decided against it, simply holding on until they reached the gate. After a momentary pause, the guards lifted the gate just high enough for the squad to exit, then shut it tight behind them.

"Alright guys, the location we think Mikasa's being held at is about a half of a day away from here. By the time we're half an hour away from the wall, if not earlier, I'm sure we'll encounter a titan or two so be on your guard," Eren ordered, pulling ahead at a moderate trot. The other three nodded their understanding as they followed close behind. Sojin twisted himself to look back at Christa, wishing he had had the chance to tell her what had happened between him and Eren. The blonde girl gave him a confused look, obviously unsure of why he seemed unhappy to be riding with his crush. Unwrapping one arm from around Eren, he tried his best to signal that he'd tell her later.

"Hey, stop signaling to her and hold on tight. We don't want you falling off at this speed," Eren ordered, glancing back at the younger boy. Sojin froze, realizing Eren knew what he was signaling about, then grudgingly obliged. A few minutes passed with the boys remaining silent before Eren attempted an apology once more.

"Okay, you don't have to forgive me, but at least work with me. You're putting yourself in danger if you don't, and I really don't want that," the boy stated sincerely. Sojin remained quiet for a moment. Honestly, he really wasn't mad about the interrogation — misunderstandings happened. What angered the boy was the fact that Eren had given him no closure. After the confession, Sojin had at least hoped to hear an "I'm sorry, I don't feel the same way" from the boy, yet Eren seemed to completely skip over it. The younger boy had far too much pride to ask how the titan-shifter felt — heck, that would basically be the same as confessing again. Regardless, Eren's orders were true. If he didn't obey, he would not only be putting himself in danger, but Jean and Christa as well.

"Fine, I'll work with you," he replied, leaning to the right a bit to peer over Eren's shoulder. The terrain was completely flat, but the boy could make out trees in the distance, perhaps half an hour away. Sojin let out a sigh of relief, well aware that trees were a soldier's best friend. The flat terrain that they rode upon now offered no place for their 3D maneuver gear to connect to, making it quite deadly if met with titans. Fortunately, this voyage was going almost too smoothly. After another ten minutes of riding, though, Sojin thought he felt a tremor. Although he preferred not to speak to Eren, the younger boy momentarily through his pride away.

"Eren, did you feel a tremor?" he asked. The older boy peered over his shoulder, giving Sojin a questioning look.

"No…why? Did you?" he replied, a hint of concern in his voice. Sojin shook his head.

"No, it must have just been my imagination," he replied. Scanning around both sides, the boy didn't see any immediate threats. Looking forward again, the forest was much closer, the silhouettes of the trees filling his view. Squinting to get a better look, something caught the boy's eye. From behind the nearest tree protruded a giant arm, almost impossible to spot from this distance.

"Eren! Stop!" the black-haired boy exclaimed, grabbing on to Eren's shoulders. The boy pulled their horse to an immediate halt, with Christa, Armin, and Jean following suit.

"What is it?!" Eren exclaimed, turning back to face the younger boy. Sojin pointed towards the woods.

"An arm! By that tree!" he exclaimed. Just as Eren leaned forwards to look at the limb, the titan fully emerged from behind the tree, making a mad dash for the squad.

"Damn it!" Eren exclaimed. "Everyone, get to the woods! We don't have a chance out here if more of them appear!"

Eren urged his horse forward at a full gallop, heading straight towards the incoming titan.

"Dodge around it at the last second!" he ordered to the others. Sojin looked back at Christa worriedly, always fearing for the girl in these kinds of situations. Facing forwards again, he shook his head — she was just as prepared as anyone to handle a titan. In fact, she was probably the best of the five of them on horseback.

"Sojin, don't let go of me!" Eren shouted, tightening his grasp on the reigns as the titan neared.


	7. Chapter 7

In the blink of an eye, the rampaging titan was upon the five member squad. Just before the giant would have trampled the soldiers, Eren's horse pulled sharply to the left, while the other two horses pulled to the right. The titan reached for the titan-shifter's horse, narrowly missing hitting the animal with its giant palm. Eren let out a sigh of relief, realizing that all three horses had made it past the titan unharmed. However, the problem was far from resolved. Realizing it had missed all of its prey, the titan quickly turned around, dashing at full speed after its meal.

"We're nearly to the woods!" Eren shouted, pushing his horse to gallop even faster. "Everyone get ready to put our battle plan into action!"

Sojin clung to Eren for dear life as the horse sped forward. In all of his time in the army, he had never seen a steed go as fast as the one he rode on now. Eren placed his hand over Sojin's on his waist, getting the boy's attention.

"Remember, don't fight!" he ordered to the younger boy. "Just find a tree and stay safe in it. If our medic gets injured we'll be out of luck."

Sojin wished to help his friends in the upcoming battle, but knew if he got injured he would just become a burden to the squad. As the titan drew within arm's reach, the three horses reached the edge of the woods.

"Everyone up!" Eren shouted, lifting his foot onto the horse's back and jumping off of the animal. With the skill of a pro, the hero lifted himself into the canopy with his 3D maneuver gear. Glancing to his right, he saw Christa and Jean lift off of their steeds as well, Christa's running further into the forest without a master to guide it. Armin made eye contact with the medic, still on the back of his horse.

"Sojin, get to safety while we take this thing out!" he exclaimed, before jumping from his horse. Sojin struggled to steady himself on the back of his now uncontrolled horse, leaning forward to grab onto the reigns, the titan now immediately behind him. Sojin brought one foot up, preparing to jump, but the giant beat him too it. The titan leapt forward for a full body tackle, causing the steed to take a sharp left to get out of harm's way. The medic was launched from the horse's back, flying forward just feet from the flying titan. Seeing the sky tumble above him, the boy fired his 3D maneuver gear out of reflex, miraculously managing to pierce a tree trunk. Sojin was lifted skywards just as the titan landed in the spot he had been suspended in moments before, skidding face-first upon the ground. Hanging from the tree trunk, the boy let out a deep breath. Why could these plans never go smoothly for him?

"Oi, Sojin, are you trying to give us all a heart attack?" asked Jean's voice as the slender boy landed on a branch a few feet above. "Come sit up here and don't get into any more close calls."

The younger boy let out a sigh, ascending to the tree branch then taking a seat. The titan, which had now righted itself, was clawing at the base of the tree hungrily. Out of the woods emerged a second titan, joining its companion at the base of the tree. Sojin caught sight of his allies, each located in a different tree nearby.

"Armin! Christa! Take the one that just appeared," Eren ordered, pointing at the newcomer. "Jean, let's go!"

Without hesitation, both brown-haired boys leapt from their trees, descending down to a point just outside of the titans' reach. Out of nowhere, both Christa and Armin zipped by the titans, causing both giants to begin chasing the blonde duo in a frenzy. The pair quickly diverged, one titan following the boy and one following the girl further into the woods. Eren and Jean both pursued Christa's titan, seemingly planning to take it down before assisting Armin. Within seconds, all four were out of eyesight, speeding deeper into the forest. Sojin felt a shiver run down his spine, still sitting atop the tree branch. Even with the threats gone, something about this forest simply felt ominous. He wished at least one of the members had stayed behind with him. The twenty-year-old let out a sigh, accepting that this was the life of a medic. While usually exposed to the least amount of danger, the team's medic was often left alone while the other team members went out to battle.

Unsettled by the air of the forest, Sojin rose to his feet, putting his back to the gigantic trunk of the tree. He was tempted to chase after his friends, but knew if he moved too far from this position he would be all but impossible to find. Running his hand down the tree bark, he was surprised to find an irregularity in the trunk at this height. Turning around, he found huge slash marks in the bark. What kind of animal could reach this height that could produce that sort of damage? Certainly no bird was powerful enough to leave such an indent on the trunk — he was sure of that from all of his past birdwatching walks. Glancing at the other trees, he saw that they too had gashes cut into them. From the looks of the damage, it seemed to be caused by extremely sharp claws cutting the bark. Sojin knew exactly where this was going, drawing his swords out as goosebumps broke out on his skin. He knew there was an unnatural vibe to this forest and he refused to be caught off guard for once. These marks were certainly the doing of a titan — probably an aberrant. The medic looked in the direction his friends had sped off in, wondering if he should give chase to warn them, but deciding he'd just cause more trouble.

Another half hour passed with no signs of danger. Sojin sheathed his swords, exhaling heavily before taking a seat. Maybe there wasn't an aberrant…this forest's creepy aura was probably just getting to him. The silence of the woods was certainly taking its toll on the medic's psyche with the medic jumping at the sound of every rustling leaf. One particularly loud snap of a twig set the boy on edge, leaning forward on the branch he sat upon. Peering around the tree trunk, he instantly pulled his head back, barely dodging a huge metal claw. The claw's owner shot by the boy's branch, powered by sheer momentum, before sinking its claws into a perpendicular tree and hanging from it. Sojin had no time to react to the creature's approach, but from a quick overview, he could see that his premonition had been right — an aberrant. The titan was actually quite small, seemingly only 3-meters tall which Sojin assumed aided its ability to jump through the forest. Rather than normal eyes, it's eyes glowed yellow with no pupils. The rest of its face, while still human, reminded Sojin of a bat — especially its flat nose and sharp canines. From the back of its head protruded either spiky hair or metal spikes, the boy couldn't quite tell which one. Sojin's eyes widened as he viewed the claws that had nearly struck him. Three metallic claws that seemed more like knives than anything else, protruded from the titan's hands where its fingers should have been. Surprisingly, its feet seemed to have normal titan structure.

Instantly, the thought of his teammates filled the boy's mind. Is this what had taken them so long? Did they get injured by this creature? Sojin locked eyes with the titan for a brief moment, realizing it was sentient. The titan placed its feet against the tree it hung from then pushed off with incredible force, zooming towards the medic. It was all Sojin could do to push himself forward off of the branch he sat on, hurtling towards the forest floor as the titan landed on his perch. The creature wasted no time, jumping off and diving towards the falling boy. Sojin whipped his swords out, firing his maneuver gear into a nearby tree and shifting his course away from the titan. The creature, not one to be tricked, dug its claws into the tree, slowing its decent before jumping after the boy yet again. As the boy switched course yet again, he felt his stomach drop. There was no way he was going to get out of this. The creature was just as fast as he was, if not faster, and he was bound to make a mistake sooner or later. The chase continued for a few more minutes, both combatants flying from tree to tree before the moment Sojin had been dreading occurred.

The medic fired his maneuver gear into the nearest tree, barely dodging out of the way of the titan. His next shot, however, missed its target, racing past the tree it was supposed to impale before returning to its holster. The tiny mistake gave the titan the moment it needed, shooting towards the boy with one claw out before Sojin could re-fire his gear. The medic slashed his swords forward with all of his might, clashing with the creature's metallic claws. Somehow, the strike was enough to deflect the claw away, but the force of the titan's full body smashed directly into the boy. Unable to grab hold of the tree and recover, the titan fell to the forest floor, momentarily dazed. Sojin fared even worse. The force of the collision had smashed the boy's head into the tree trunk he hung from, instantly knocking him out. Dangling lifelessly from his maneuver gear with his swords fallen to the ground, the boy was now a free meal for the titan. Just as the titan came around, picking itself up from the ground, a worried voice pierced the silence.

"Sojin, what are you doing?! Get up here!" ordered Eren, emerging onto the scene and landing on a tree branch a bit above the unconscious boy. The titan-shifters breathing momentarily stopped as he saw his friend's slumped over form, unsure whether he had already been killed or not. The clawed-creature began its ascent towards its target, climbing rapidly claw-over-claw up the tree trunk.

"Damn it…" was all Eren could manage to get out, his mind clouded by worry. The brown-haired boy leapt from his perch, descending towards both Sojin and the titan, determined to defend the medic — regardless of whether he was already dead.


	8. Chapter 8

The race was close. Too close. Eren whizzed past Sojin just moments before the clawed monster would have been within reach. The brown-haired soldier continued falling past Sojin, raising his sword, then slamming it straight through the surprised titan's eye. The giant let out a roar of pain, maintaining its grip on the tree, but pausing for a moment. Eren must have miscalculated the strength of his opponent as it quickly regathered its bearings and continued its ascent towards the unconscious boy, with Eren latching on to a tree far below.

"Eren, catch him!" came Armin's voice as the blonde boy swooped in, far overhead. The tactician whipped his sword out and cut Sojin's line, sending the medic plummeting downwards, past the surprised titan. Eren, also caught off guard by Armin's sudden emergence, boosted off of the tree with all his might, preparing to catch the unconscious boy. Unfortunately, the titan reacted just as fast and launched itself even faster, colliding with Eren and sending the titan-shifter hurtling away. Armin immediately descended to help his friend, grabbing Eren and pulling him up upon a branch. Unable to grab a tree trunk, the titan once again fell towards the ground, this time within mere feet of the free-falling medic. Just before Sojin hit the forest floor, Jean swung underneath the hungry titan horizontally, grabbing the medic and landing roughly on the ground. Both Sojin and Jean tumbled through the leaves on the ground, finally rolling to a stop on their stomachs. The brown-haired boy immediately picked himself up and pulled his swords out, looking around to see where the titan had landed. Not spotting the creature, he jogged over to Sojin and pulled him upright, then dragged him to a tree, leaning him against the trunk. For a moment, the forest was silent save for the rustling of leaves. Jean looked up to where Eren and Armin had been, wondering if the titan-shifter had sustained any serious injuries from the previous collision. Unfortunately, the peace ended as soon as it had started, the titan now emerging from the woods and running towards the boy on all fours, its claws sinking into the ground each time they landed.

"Damn it…" Jean whispered to himself, glancing back at Sojin. If he took this hit head on, he wouldn't stand a chance — the titan would run him right through. But if he didn't, Sojin would be left completely unprotected. Even running wasn't a suitable option at this point. There was no way he could out maneuver the titan in the air while holding onto Sojin. Taking a deep breath, he stepped between the medic and the incoming titan, planting himself firmly on the ground with his swords at the ready. This was suicide, but maybe it would provide enough time for something else to save Sojin. A huge clap of thunder filled the air, causing Jean and the titan to jump in fright, both staring up at the canopy. Jean's eyes widened, locking on to a humongous figure hurtling downwards towards the clawed titan. Running back to Sojin, he pulled the younger boy into a secure embrace, holding his jacket over the medic's face. A moment later, dust and sticks flew every which way, pelting Jean and the clawed beast, as Eren landed on the forest floor in titan form with an earth-shattering slam. The smaller titan had managed to dodge out of the way, but its eyes now showed a bit of worry, obviously unprepared for another titan to enter the battle. As the dust storm subsided, Jean released his grip on his friend, placing the boy back against the tree and turning to face Eren.

"Crazy bastard…" he muttered, glaring at the titan-shifter. "Almost crushed us all."

The metallic titan looked from Eren to Jean, its eyes lighting up with a crazy gleam. To everyone's surprise, it propelled itself towards Jean and Sojin at full speed, ignoring Eren in a last ditch effort to catch its prey. Eren bolted after it, but was not nearly as fast as the smaller titan, unable to catch it before it got out of range.

"Jean, put the tree between you and the titan! It shouldn't be able to maneuver that well at that speed, so it's momentum will carry it past you!" Armin shouted from above. Jean glanced up at the blonde boy for a moment, nodding his understanding. Picking Sojin up he pulled the boy around to the other side of the tree, holding him in a hug so he wouldn't fall into the titan's path. Jean placed his back against the tree trunk, able to hear the titan's footsteps approaching on the other side. If all went according to plan, the titan would run past the tree due to its momentum, turn around then head back for another strike. In that time, Eren could catch up and take part in the battle. Holding the medic against his chest, Jean prayed that the plan would go smoothly for once. A shooting pain shot through the brown-haired boy's arm causing him to scream in pain, nearly dropping his unconscious companion. Looking down at his left arm, Jean's eyes widened as he saw a metallic claw impaled through his bicep. But how?! Breathing heavily, he turned his head as far as he could, not wanting to dislodge the blade from his arm. The titan had thrusted forward with it's right claw, piercing through the trunk of the tree, and managed to slice the tip of it's middle claw into Jean's arm. The pain setting in even worse now, Jean slowly lowered the medic to the ground with his right arm before wrapping it around the wound. With a scream of pain, he pulled himself forward, removing the claw from his arm and dropping to his knees, blood pouring from the wound. Gritting his teeth and looking back, he saw that the creature was now stuck to the tree, with Eren letting out a furious roar and approaching rapidly. Jean held back his tears, removing his jacket and forcefully tearing off a sleeve before wrapping it around the wound to help slow the bleeding.

Daylight seeped through the medic's eyelids, shapes finally beginning to form again. Blinking a few times, Sojin managed to slowly bring himself to a sitting position, clutching his head in pain. Before he could get his bearings, Eren's huge silhouette filled his vision as the titan-form boy grabbed onto the smaller titan, wrenching it from the tree. The clawed-titan seemed to finally realize it's fate, making eye contact with the medic before getting kicked forcefully away. Eren followed the creature deeper into the forest, smashing trees left and right and slowly shrinking into the distance. Armin seemed to be monitoring Eren's actions, following the fight and disappearing in the trees. Only then did Sojin notice the boy before him, fighting back tears and clutching his arm.

"Jean?!" he asked frantically, pushing himself to his knees to get a better look at the boy's wound. His eyes widened as he saw the amount of blood pouring into the fabric. "What happened?!"

The older boy shook his head, his right hand shaking slightly.

"It's fine…it's not that bad," he stated, grimacing. His face suddenly turned to a smile. "I was worried that that titan had done you in. I thought I might just be dragging your corpse around. I'm glad you came around."

Sojin shook his head, ignoring the boy's speech, a worried expression on his face. The medic placed his hand over Jean's bloodied one and slowly pulled it away from the wound. He gripped the cloth that had been placed over it, then looked up at Jean.

"Don't look at it. It might freak you out," he stated, signaling for Jean to look in a direction other than his arm.

"Psh, you think a little wound will scare me," Jean asked, his arm still shaking. Fortunately, he obeyed the direction and looked in the opposite direction. Sojin leaned in closer and slowly unwrapped the cloth to examine the wound. He fought back an urge to gasp at the severity of the wound, remaining silent. It was pretty bad. The creature had pierced through the back of the boy's arm, narrowly missing the bone, and almost managed to cut all the way through to the front. The wound was bleeding profusely and the boy would be in a critical state in no time at this rate. Sojin stared down at his now blood covered hands, then back up at his friend. Jean turned his head, staring back at Sojin with a look of concern spreading across his face.

"What's the matter? Why are you looking at me like that?" he asked, a sense of panic in his voice. Sojin shook his head.

"It's nothing! I just need to fix you up! But…it's going to hurt," the medic stated, looking at the ground. "I don't want to hurt the person who always saves me…"

Jean managed a grin, the pain beginning to worsen. "I don't feel pain, Sojin! Just do what you have to do. Besides, I'll be worse off if you don't, right?"

The younger boy stared back at his friend for a moment before nodding and grabbing a pack strapped to his leg. Opening the pack revealed an assortment of medical tools ranging from needles to alcohol to gauze. He quickly cleaned the blood to the best of his ability — unable to stop the flow — then pulled out a small vial of alcohol, ordering his friend to turn away so he could get a closer look at the wound. Sojin unscrewed the bottle and hesitated for a moment.

"This…is going to hurt," he stated, biting his lip. Jean shook his head.

"I told you I don't feel pain!" he exclaimed, making a thumbs-up with his uninjured arm. "Go for it."

Sojin counted down from three, then splashed the alcohol onto the wound, wincing. Jean shuttered as the liquid hit the wound, but somehow managed to hold in any grunts of pain. The younger boy wished they were within the walls where anesthetic could be applied, but this was the best he could do out here. Pulling out a needle and thread, he placed a hand on Jean's shoulders.

"Close your eyes. And I'm sorry for how much this is going to hurt," he stated, the older boy not replying this time. With a sigh, Sojin set to work on stitching the wound up. Even now, Jean withheld his screams, shaking slightly from the pain of the operation. Half an hour later, Sojin threw the needle to the ground, examining his work. The boy's arm was patched up, but Jean seemed quite fatigued from the ordeal. After rinsing his hands with the rest of the alcohol, Sojin quickly wrapped the area in gauze, then leaned Jean back against the tree trunk, looking him over with worry.

"Are you feeling okay? You should rest! I'll try to find you some water or something!" he exclaimed, getting to his feet and looking around for anything that he could bring to help his friend. The thought of the rest of the team suddenly popped into his mind.

"Wait…where's Eren?! And Christa and Armin?" he asked, squinting to see if he could get a glimpse of the others. The titan-shifter had seemed to have had the upper-hand in the battle before, but what if something had happened? Sojin, no matter how upset, still worried for his crush.

Still gazing around, he asked Jean, "Where did Eren go? Is he okay? Should I go look for him?"

The medic immediately felt guilty, realizing that the boy right in front of him needed just as much help as Eren would. He looked down as he felt something grab his hand, his eyes widening as he realized it was Jean. The taller boy tugged downwards, signaling for Sojin to sit. The medic kneeled worriedly next to his friend, his anxiety for Eren fading momentarily.

"What is it? Just tell me what you need!" Sojin exclaimed, trying to figure out what the older boy wanted and why he wasn't speaking. The nervous stare that Jean was giving him was starting to freak him out. Was the boy becoming delirious from blood loss? Just as Sojin began to turn his gaze away, the other boy placed his uninjured hand under the medic's chin and pulled him in to a kiss.


	9. Chapter 9

The younger boy blinked a few times, unsure of what had just happened, then fell onto his bottom and brought his fingers to his lips. Jean remained quiet, simply staring at the other boy. Finally, Sojin's brain started working again. He jumped to his feet, his face instantly flushing as he backed away a bit.

"What the hell, Jean?!" he exclaimed, glaring down at the injured boy in confusion. All this time, he had thought of their relationship simply as brotherly love. Jean protected him from danger and teased him, sure, but it had always seemed so platonic to Sojin. Thinking back, though, the picture was starting to become more clear in his head. Most of Jean's actions were far too nice to simply be platonic — hell, Sojin had even noticed the difference between how Jean treated him versus everyone else. Perhaps the younger boy's vision had been clouded by his own crush on Eren this whole time. To make things worse, it wasn't as if he didn't like Jean — there was no denying that he was very handsome — but he had never seen him in that way. And if he somehow did end up with Jean, where would Eren play into this? It would be a whole different story if the medic hadn't already confessed to the titan-shifter, but now it would become so awkward. Sojin put his hand to his head, gritting his teeth as he tried to sort through his thoughts.

"Sojin, I'm sorry. I should've given you some warning. I just thought you would've at least had some idea by now…" Jean uttered, regret in his eyes. The younger boy let out a quiet sigh as he walked back over to Jean and took a seat. He stared ahead for a few moments, figuring out what he wanted to say, then turned to look into the boy's eyes.

"Jean…I didn't know. I was stupid for not realizing, but somehow I never put the whole thing together in my mind. I always thought of you as my older brother," he said, shifting his gaze to the ground and thinking for a moment. If he accepted Jean now, he'd have a loving significant other who was both handsome and caring. Sojin winced as his mind wandered to Eren. Love could make a person crazy and the medic could feel its effects. Why was he still so into Eren when he had a perfect person confessing to him right now? After a few more seconds of silence, the medic made up his mind, looking back up at Jean.

"I like you too, bu —" he began, before pausing mid-sentence as something caught his eye.

"Sojin! Jean! I'm so glad you guys are okay!" Christa exclaimed, landing softly before the pair. Sojin glanced at the blonde girl, then back at Jean, unsure of what to do. Jean seemed to be frozen in anticipation of hearing what the medic had to say, a slight look of worry crossing his brow.

"What's wrong? You guys are okay, right?" Christa asked with concern, jogging over and kneeling before the two. Sojin immediately put on a fake smile, nodding happily at his friend.

"Yeah, we're okay! Jean saved me from a titan!" he replied, pointing towards his savior who still wore a blank expression. Sojin glanced over at the injured boy, unsure of what to do. Placing his hand on Jean's shoulder, he gave his friend a gentle shake hoping to snap him out of his trance.

"Oh, right! Yeah, it was no big deal, really. Where have _you_ been this whole time, Christa?" Jean asked, finally playing along with the happiness act. Christa gave the boys a look of confusion for their sudden change in behavior, but didn't question it.

"I was taking down those two titans we saw initially. Armin was supposed to stay with me while you and Eren went to help Sojin, but I guess he got concerned for Eren…" she stated, a hint of momentary annoyance in her voice before switching back to normal. "But anyway, I managed to take them down! I'm glad you two are alright!"

"Same to you! I can't believe you managed to defeat two of them all by yourself! You've definitely improved since back in the day," Sojin said with a smile as he pushed himself back to a standing position. Christa's face lit up at the complement, but her attention quickly shifted to something behind Sojin.

"Oh! It's Eren and Armin! They have someone with them, too…" she said, pointing over Sojin's shoulder. The medic looked behind him to find his two allies quickly approaching, an unconscious boy with shoulder length black hair slumped over Eren's shoulder. His legs and arms were tightly bound, suggesting he was not an ally. Sojin turned to Jean, urging him to stand up as the party finally regrouped.

"Sojin, sorry we didn't get to you sooner!" Eren exclaimed, landing and placing the unconscious boy on the ground. "I'm honestly impressed you managed to fend that titan off for as long as you did."

Eren glanced down at the long-haired boy, before explaining who the newcomer was.

"That's the titan for you. It was a difficult battle, but thanks to Armin's help I managed to take him down. We weren't sure if it was a shifter, but Armin found this kid inside and cut him out. He's been unconscious since."

Sojin took a closer look at the boy. His clothes were all black and quite simple — just a mesh, short-sleeve shirt and slim black pants with a silver belt. From the looks of it, he seemed to be about Sojin's age, if not a bit younger. As far as appearances went, the medic would have deemed him fairly good-looking, had he not tried to kill the boy earlier. Glancing over at Jean, he noticed that the injured boy was also examining the newcomer with a look of interest. A feeling of disdain for the unconscious boy washed over Sojin upon seeing Jean stare, though he wasn't sure if the feeling was caused by jealousy or rage for injuring his friend. The medic shook his head, knowing he had no right to be jealous after he had planned on rejecting Jean.

"We plan to question him when he wakes up and hopefully find out more about Mikasa's location!" Armin exclaimed, snapping Sojin back to the situation at hand.

"Do you really think he'll cooperate with us?" asked Christa, shaking her head. Armin let out a sigh, staring down at their captive.

"We'd better hope so…" the blonde boy uttered. There was a momentary pause before Eren resumed giving orders.

"It's starting to get dark now and our horses are long gone. I think we should call it a night and start fresh tomorrow morning," he stated, rubbing his arm and gazing around at his teammates. Everyone seemed in agreement, nodding simultaneously at the prospect of rest.

"We're gonna have to take shifts watching this kid, though. Make sure he doesn't kill us while we're sleeping," he continued. Armin nodded, offering to take the first shift.

"Titans aren't really active at night, but I think it'd be better if we slept in the trees," suggested the blonde boy. "The branches on some of the bigger trees are so wide that it'll be tough to roll off…but keep your gear on just to be safe."

Everyone nodded, then followed Eren to the biggest tree in the surrounding area. Sojin gasped in awe, just now noticing how abnormally large the plant was. It's trunk extended so high that the boy couldn't even make out the top branches, while each branch was wide enough to pace around on. The party ascended to a branch halfway up the tree, Armin lugging the unconscious boy with him.

"Alright, Armin, you stand guard here. The rest of us will be a bit further up," stated Eren, heading upwards towards the next branch. Sojin and the two others followed, landing swiftly upon the huge tree. Eren pointed to a branch directly on the other side of the trunk, looking at Jean and Christa.

"You two can take that branch for the night. I think we'd be at higher risk of rolling off if all four of us stay on one," he stated. Christa nodded without hesitation, but Jean gave a glance towards Sojin, looking as if he was going to protest. The medic, wanting to at least straighten things out with the titan-shifter, was actually happy to have the chance to have a moment alone with Eren. Jean opened his mouth, but closed it upon seeing Sojin's lack of protest, following Christa around the trunk to the other branch. The black-haired boy felt bad for leaving Jean without an answer, but he needed to receive an answer from Eren first. Still, something about this situation felt wrong. Rejecting someone who had confessed to him for another who had been hesitant up till now just seemed stupid. Even though Sojin knew this, he ignored the fact, desperately wanting to know Eren's answer.

"Sojin, hurry and get some rest," stated Eren, who had already laid down across the branch. The titan-shifter tapped the spot next to him, signaling for the medic to come over. The younger boy obeyed, sitting and staring at Eren for a moment before finally laying down. Even through the tree branches, Sojin could see a bit of the starry sky, twinkling brightly over the canopy. He let out a sigh, unsure of how to start the conversation with Eren. However, it seemed he didn't need to say anything as the titan-shifter began speaking first.

"So…I was trying to gather my thoughts about our whole situation during the horse ride and I think I've got some idea now," he began. Sojin's heart beat increased, not having expected Eren to bring the topic up himself.

"First, I'm sorry for leaving you hanging for so long…that was wrong of me. Second…" Eren paused and rolled onto his side, propping his head up on his arm and gazing at the younger boy. "I guess it took the event of you almost getting eaten by a titan to realize, but I really do like you. I was completely ready to die in order to save you from that attack…and I'm not sure I'd do that for someone I didn't love. My feelings are still confusing — what with Mikasa and all — but for now, I think I can safely say that I like you too."

Sojin, who had been holding his breath during the whole speech, let out a gasp of both relief and surprise.

"R-really? Are you sure?!" he questioned, turning his head to look Eren in the eye. The squad leader nodded his confirmation, a smile spreading across his face as he rolled back onto his back. Eren spread his arm out, placing it under Sojin's head, then pulled the younger boy in a bit closer.

"Don't worry, it's not a dream," he stated with a quiet laugh. "Anyway, it's been a long day for you, so get some sleep. We can be happy about this tomorrow!"

Sojin also let out a soft laugh, a sense of overwhelming happiness welling up inside of him as he snuggled a bit closer to the titan-shifter.

On the other side of the tree, Jean leaned against the trunk staring at Christa, unable to fall asleep. The injured boy winced as he heard every word of the conversation taking place on the opposite side of the tree — the reason behind Sojin's hesitation becoming clear. Even after the two boys had stopped talking, Jean remained leaning against the trunk, a feeling that he had never experienced taking over him. Pure misery.


	10. Chapter 10

The feeling of jealousy ran down Jean's spine, tormenting him as he sat alone against the tree trunk. Clenching his teeth in order to suppress his emotions, he picked up a fiery red leaf laying next to him and crushed it in his palm, dropping it to the forest floor. The brown-haired boy tried to get his thoughts in order. What exactly was he feeling right now? Towards Eren, he could feel a bit of resentment. Although the squad leader had never known about his love towards their younger friend, it still felt as if Eren had purposely snatched the boy away right after his own confession. Even towards Sojin, he felt a sense of betrayal. After all the times he had helped the younger boy _and _a confession, it seemed quite cruel of him to run straight into Eren's arms. Jean shook his head a bit, trying to convince himself that it wasn't Sojin's fault. A person couldn't help who they loved, right? He let out a quiet sigh, then finally pushed himself to his knees and crawled a bit closer to where Christa was sleeping, laying himself down in preparation for sleep. The forest was dead quiet with even the leaves laying motionless. Normally, such a quiet environment would make for a peaceful rest, but with his current mindset it put Jean even more on edge. Nevertheless, within a half hour the boy had finally managed to leave his troubles behind and enter sleep.

Armin paced back and forth across the tree branch, gazing out into the night. So far the night watch had been extremely smooth. Not only had the captive boy not woken up, but it seemed as if everything in the forest was asleep at this point. The tactician wished he could go to sleep himself, beginning to regret volunteering for the first shift. A good three hours had already passed, so he would go ask Eren to relieve him in a few minutes. Stopping his pacing for a moment, he stared at the captive in confusion. Flashing back to the previous battle, it seemed like the metal titan's target had mostly been Sojin. Even when Eren had been standing right in front of it, it had lunged for the medic in a last ditch effort. But why? Sojin wasn't even a titan-shifter or a high-ranking noble. Armin shook his head, throwing the thoughts away. There was no point in trying to figure this out without the boy being awake. Glancing up to where Eren was sleeping, he waited a few moments before deciding to go wake the boy. He wouldn't be able to come up with any useful plans if he got no sleep. Armin glanced at the sleeping captive, a bit hesitant to leave him alone. How was it possible that he was still unconscious? Regardless, if the boy woke up, he literally had no place to run. With a shrug, Armin loosed his 3D Maneuver Gear, ascending to the branch where Eren and Sojin slept. Landing softly, he took a step back in surprise upon seeing the medic in Eren's arms. The titan-shifter had already alerted him to the situation with Sojin, but he hadn't sounded like he had intended for anything more than friendship. In fact, he had specifically said that he was leaning much more towards Mikasa. Armin narrowed his eyes a bit, then circled around the boys, kneeling next to Eren and gently shaking the boy's arm.

"Eh…? Armin?" Eren asked sleepily, slowly opening his eyes and turning his head to look at the blonde.

"It's your turn to watch our captive," Armin whispered, pointing towards the lower branch. "I can't stay up any longer."

Eren nodded, carefully removing his arm from beneath Sojin's head and pulling himself to a sitting position.

"Ah, right. Sorry for not relieving you earlier," Eren said, rubbing his hair back into place. Armin shook his head and smiled, but then looked towards Sojin, pointing at the sleeping boy.

"What are you doing?!" he questioned sharply. "You said you were leaning towards Mikasa!"

Eren shook his head. "I don't really know…I thought I liked Mikasa more, but after spending more time with him, I also really like Sojin."

"I guess that makes sense…" Armin whispered after a slight pause. "Just be careful or you'll end up hurting both of them."

Eren nodded his understanding, then ruffled Armin's hair. "Since when are you so up to snuff on romantic advice?" he asked with a snicker, before jumping from the branch and landing next to the captive. Armin glared at the joke, but then lay down, making sure there was a good amount of space between him and the medic and then falling asleep immediately.

The titan-shifter glared down at the captive boy, not falling for the possibility that the younger boy was still unconscious. He kneeled down to eye level with the black-haired boy, examining the captive closely. Eren continued to stare intensely for a few moments, seemingly looking for something. There! The squad leader smirked as he noticed the captive's eyelid quiver a bit.

"Oi, how long does it take someone to come around?" Eren asked, loud enough for the boy to hear him, adding a slight smirk. He paused for a moment, waiting to see if the taunt would work, but the boy remained silent. "Look, I already know you're awake. I just want to talk to you, so drop the act."

Surprisingly, the black-haired boy did as he was told, finally opening his eyes and glaring furiously at Eren.

"Let me go!" he exclaimed, pulling at the bonds that held his arms together behind his back. Eren felt a bit of pity for the boy, but remembered how he had tried to kill Sojin earlier, reigniting his anger. The brown-haired boy shook his head and rose to his feet, placing his hands behind his own back.

"If you wanna be set free, then you'll have to cooperate," he stated, any friendliness in his voice disappearing. "Let's start this interview. First of all, what's your name? Just give me a full introduction so I don't have to drag it out of you."

The boy finally stopped squirming, realizing it was hopeless, then turned his attention to his captor. He hesitated for a moment, seemingly unsure of whether to give Eren an honest answer or fib, but then carried on.

"I'm Kizae. I'm 19," he responded, sarcasm filling his voice. Eren's eyes narrowed at the response, but he was actually impressed that the kid had given him even that much information.

"Well, I wish I could say it's nice to meet you, Kizae. Anyway, you know what I really want you to tell me," Eren said, taking a step closer to the boy. Kizae glanced to the left, breaking eye contact and remaining silent. Eren let out a sigh at the boy's stubbornness.

"Don't make me do this the hard way. Why were you attacking us? Specifically Sojin. He's not even a titan-shifter so what business do you have with him?" Eren asked, his voice raising slightly. The captive ignored the statement, gritting his teeth and continuing to look to the side. Eren rolled his eyes, unsheathing his sword and bringing it to the boy's neck.

"You're lucky we just cut your titan flesh last time. This body won't recover the same way, you know," he stated. Eren had no intention of actually harming the boy, but hopefully his threat was convincing enough. Kizae hesitated a moment, eyeing the blade in fear before a smirk spread across his face. To the squad leader's surprise, the boy jerked his arm upward and across the edge of the blade, cutting into his own flesh.

"Shit!" Eren exclaimed, a thunderous boom striking the branch as Kizae managed to use the wound to shift into his titan form. The enormous sound shook everyone from their sleep, all four members quickly rising to their feet to find the source. Eren, meanwhile, had been blown off the branch by the force of the transformation, managing to latch on to the tree far below. Checking his gear, he let out a curse as he saw that one of the hookshots had been damaged by the explosive force, making him immobile.

Peering over the edge of the tree branch, Sojin began to panic as he could not catch sight of Eren. However, he hardly had time to worry about that as the titan locked eyes with him, immediately launching itself upwards towards the branch where he and Armin stood.

"It's after Sojin!" Armin exclaimed, pushing the medic out of the way of the titan's lunge.

"How did it shift back into titan form?!" asked Christa, swinging over to Sojin's side of the tree, Jean right behind her. Armin shook his head, unsure as well, but tried to think of a plan. The titan had landed close by and was already preparing itself for another launch.

"I don't know if Eren can shift into titan form again this soon, so we'll have to fight it!" Armin exclaimed. "Christa, it's after Sojin so defend him and try to get as far away as possible. Jean and I will try to buy you time and subdue it. I'm not sure where Eren we—"

Before the blonde boy could complete his orders, the titan relaunched itself, propelling itself towards the branch, then slicing the limb clear off the tree. Christa and Sojin both let out a yelp as the squad began free-falling, but managed to stabilize themselves with their maneuver gear.

"Go!" Armin yelled at the girl and medic, launching himself at the titan with his swords out. Jean followed suit, narrowly missing a swipe from the giant creature as it leapt towards Sojin yet again. The medic dodged out of the way, but was hesitant to leave the battle. Why was he always so useless when it came to these situations? Could he really run again and not help his teammates at all?

"Sojin, c'mon!" Christa exclaimed, beckoning for the boy to follow her lead. Sojin shook his head at the girl, before dodging to another tree.

"It'll be much easier to take it down if there's four of us!" he called to the others, pulling his swords from their sheaths. He turned to Christa who was closest to him, not wanting the titan to hear his plan. "It's definitely focusing on me! If I can lead it to you guys, you can take it by surprise and win this! Go tell Jean and Armin! It's not a choice…I'm not leaving this time!"

The boy climbed further up the tree before Christa could object, the giant creature landing not far below and ascending just beneath him. Looking down, he could see Christa relaying the plan to the other boys. A moment later, the blonde girl signaled towards Sojin to head in the direction she pointed before all three of them dispersed. The medic pushed himself off the tree, withdrawing his hookshots and free-falling past the titan. The creature hesitated for a moment in confusion before pursuing, the metal spikes atop its head glinting in the moonlight. Sojin pulled himself in the direction that Christa had pointed to earlier, swinging from tree to tree as quickly as he could. He could feel the impact of the titan colliding with the trees behind him, making him grit his teeth anxiously. The pursuit continued for what felt like a few more minutes with no sign of the other three. The titan was finally closing in on him and even Sojin wasn't sure what the plan was at this point. Had he gone in the wrong direction? No, he had definitely seen Christa point this way. The boy took a deep breath pushing forwards as fast as he could and staying his course. He had to trust that the others had planned this and weren't about to let him get eaten. At the titan's next launch, it got so close that the boy could feel its breath envelope him as it attempted to chomp down. The next attack would definitely reach the boy and the titan knew it as well. With a blood-curdling screech, it launched itself at full speed towards the soldier, it's mouth wide open and eyes set on its prey. Sojin closed his eyes in anticipation for a painful end, but opened them as something bowled into him, carrying him to the side and out of the titan's path. Looking at his savior, he was a bit surprised to see Armin, having thought the others had abandoned him.

The titan also seemed to have forgotten about the boy's allies as its mouth remained open even after the boy was out of its trajectory. Suddenly, both Jean and Christa appeared from the trees, Christa blasting towards the titan's left side and Jean to its right. Sojin's jaw dropped as he saw the duo slice through the titan's knuckles on each hand with pinpoint accuracy before it could even react, the metallic claws dropping harmlessly to the forest floor. Unaware of what had just happened, the titan landed on a tree, stabbing its now bloody stubs into the bark. Unable to maintain a hold, it fell to the forest floor, letting out another deafening cry before landing with a thud and falling silent. Not wasting any time, all four squad members descended to the forest floor, prepared to battle the titan once more. To their surprise, the giant lay twitching on its back, one of its own claws piercing directly through its stomach.

"It…it landed on one of its own claws?!" Christa exclaimed, wincing a bit at the gruesome site. Jean and Sojin seemed just as shocked, but Armin wasted little time, immediately heading down to the titan's side. The creature thrashed about as the blonde boy got nearer, but the impalement kept it from rising. The metallic spikes upon its head prevented it from resting its neck upon the ground, giving Armin a straight shot at its nape. Waiting for an opportune moment, Armin shot forwards beneath the titan's neck and sliced through the flesh, the creature instantly falling still. Sojin, Jean, and Christa all descended to the forest floor, helping Armin dissect Kizae from the titan's nape.

"Damnit, Eren…" Jean muttered, staring at the unconscious boy. He turned to the other three, avoiding eye contact with Sojin. "Let's make sure he doesn't escape again. It's time we get some answers."


	11. Chapter 11

As the four waited for Kizae to come back around, Sojin's mind wandered to the squad leader. Turning to glance at Armin, he could tell that the blonde boy was also anxious about Eren's whereabouts. However, the threat of having the captive escape again kept him glued to the spot. Sojin, who knew he would be of little help in watching the boy, decided he would offer to look for Eren.

"Shouldn't one of us look for Eren? What if he got injured! I'll go search for him since I won't be of much use here anyway," the youngest boy stated, beginning to depart from the group.

"I'll go with you," came Jean's voice from behind, causing Sojin to wince. He turned around to object, but then held his tongue. Perhaps this would be a good time to clear things up between the two. He didn't want to leave Jean without an answer, especially now that he himself had received closure from Eren.

"I think that'd be good…in case we run into any more titans," Sojin replied, smiling at Jean. The older boy did not return the smile, but walked forwards to join Sojin.

"Find him and come straight back here," Armin stated, Christa nodding her agreement. Sojin made a thumbs up, then began walking back the way he had come, Jean a pace behind. After a few moments of walking in silence — Sojin wanted to make sure they were out of earshot — he slowed his pace down, walking next to Jean. Although he managed to hold his composure on the outside, internally he was shaking with nervousness, unaware that the other boy already knew about his situation with Eren. How could he break Jean's heart after all he had done for him?

"So…" he began, pausing for a moment in thought. The guilt was almost overwhelming. Jean was such a good person and the fact that Sojin would have accepted his confession had Eren not been there only made matters worse. For a moment, the boy considered telling Eren that he had lost interest and instead accept Jean's love. He shook the thought, knowing it was a bit too late for that.

"I'm sorry that we haven't had a chance to talk till now," Sojin continued, glancing up at Jean. The older boy shook his head.

"It's not your fault titans keep attacking us," he replied. Sojin couldn't tell if he was imagining it, but he thought he could sense a hint of sarcasm in the comment. Ignoring it, he continued on.

"I appreciate that you like me! Er, I'm flattered, actually! It's just that…" Sojin paused again, unsure whether to tell Jean about Eren or keep it a secret. However, Jean stepped in before the younger boy could decide.

"You like Eren. I know," he stated, still playing cool. Sojin stopped walking, surprised that Jean already knew about the situation. Getting a hold of himself, he ran forward to catch up to Jean.

"H-how did you know already?!" he asked, his face flushing in embarrassment. Jean's stoic expression finally shifted as he broke into a smirk.

"It's just that obvious," he replied, not wanting to confess to eavesdropping the night before. Sojin stared at the ground to hide his red face. What else was there to say if Jean already knew? Telling the older boy that he still liked him as well as Eren would only make the pain worse for Jean. Sojin let out a sigh before looking up at his companion.

"Well, this won't get in the way of our friendship, right? You're my best friend on the Corps," the younger boy said, still feeling guilty. He was surprised as Jean's arm rested around his shoulders.

"You think a little thing like this will stop me from defending you? Have some faith, Sojin!" Jean replied playfully, messing up the younger boy's hair. Sojin let out a laugh, surprised that Jean was taking everything so well, but relieved nonetheless. The pair continued on for what seemed like an eternity, chatting about all sorts of topics until another voice broke into their conversation.

"Oi, Sojin!" came Eren's voice. Both of the searching boys looked to where the call had come from to find the squad leader hanging helplessly midway down a tree trunk.

"Are you okay?!" Sojin exclaimed, running towards his crush's location.

"I'm fine! My equipment just broke so I've been stuck here…" the brown-haired boy replied, pointing to his gear. "Come help me down!"

Sojin nodded, lifting himself up the tree with his own gear as Jean watched with folded arms. The medic wrapped his arms around Eren firmly then ordered the older boy to release his gear from the tree. Eren obeyed, placing his full weight on Sojin. The black-haired boy shuttered a bit under the weight, almost dropping the leader. Steeling his grip around Eren, he slowly lowered the duo to the forest floor, shaking out his arms after releasing the squad leader.

"Glad you're alright, captain," Jean said, approaching and patting Eren on the shoulder. "Try not to let our captive escape again, though."

Eren glared at the last comment, but nodded his head. Sojin wedged himself between the two, then pulled them forwards.

"Let's hurry back! Armin and Christa are probably getting tired of watching that kid," he exclaimed.

Armin pulled the knot tight enough to keep the captive from moving, standing back up and examining his work. Kizae struggled under the rope bonds now holding him to a tree stump, throwing out angry curses every now and then.

"You're not going to escape this time!" Armin exclaimed, shooting the boy a glare before turning to Christa.

"What are we gonna do with him?" he asked in a lowered volume. "There's no way he's going to give us any information and if we set him free he'll just come after us again."

Christa nodded in agreement. "I'm not sure…I wish we could at least make a deal where we set him free and he leaves us alone, but….I don't think that will happen."

"Ah! That's it! Christa, you haven't met him yet, right?" Armin asked, snapping his fingers. "Why don't you have a go at talking to him! Just be your naturally sweet self and maybe he'll calm down a bit."

The blonde girl looked from Armin to the still struggling boy, a look of apprehension spreading across her face. To Armin's surprise, she steeled herself and nodded her agreement. Turning away from her companion, she approached the black-haired boy, maintaining a welcoming smile on her face.

"Er…I'm sorry. These bonds are really uncomfortable, right?" she asked, tilting her head slightly.

"No, they're so comfortable," he spat back sarcastically. Christa remained impartial, continuing on.

"Then, what's your name? I'm Christa!" she said, hesitating for a moment before adding to her statement. "Look, I just want to help you out! Some of the boys on our squad can be really rough and I don't want you to end up injured. At least work with me a little, alright?"

The captive seemed ready to call her bluff, but surprisingly gave in, still scowling. "I'm Kizae," he replied reluctantly, finally stopping his squirming. Christa nodded her head happily and waved at the boy.

"Ah, Kizae? That's a great name. I know we're not on good terms right now, but would you consider working with us, Kizae?" she asked, staring into his eyes. The boy looked to the side, breaking the eye contact before replying.

"Not until my mission is complete," he replied. Christa was ecstatic that he hadn't declined the offer all together. Was this tactic actually working? Gaining heart, the blonde girl pressed on.

"Mission? What mission? Maybe we can help you complete it!" she replied, pumping her fist excitedly. "We're happy to help a person in need! Even if they attacked us already."

Kizae scoffed at the girl's response, not planning to make ties so easily.

"I'm basically an assassin for hire. If I told you my mission I'd have to kill all of you and I'm _sure_ you wouldn't want that," he replied, a wicked grin spreading across his face. Christa frowned a bit, pointing at the rope containing the boy.

"Kill us? But…you're the captive right now. If anything, Jean and Eren will kill you once they get back here! I wish I was lying, but those two aren't as merciful as Armin and I," she replied, a bit less friendly this time.

Kizae let out a curse before falling silent for a moment, seemingly pondering his options. Christa almost felt a bit sorry for him. For a kid no more than nineteen, he was in a very stressful situation at the moment. She could sense the fear emanating from the boy's body.

"I…even if I told you my mission, it wouldn't help any of us. Trust me," he replied, making eye contact with the girl and grinding his teeth together nervously.

Christa shook her head before taking a step closer to the captive.

"Look, you can at least just tell me. I promise I won't tell any of the boys! I'll even make Armin go further away!" she said, pointing towards the blonde boy. Kizae remained silent for a few moments, looking Christa over.

"Fine. I'll tell you, but if you tell any of them, I swear you'll be put at the top of my hitlist," he replied, defeatedly. He nodded towards Armin. "Make him go away so he doesn't hear."

Christa's face lit up as she hurried over to Armin and explained the situation.

"Alright, I'll back off a little, but I'm still watching to make sure he doesn't pull anything," Armin stated, taking a few steps back to a range out of earshot. Christa smiled at him before hurrying back to Kizae.

"Okay, he's out of earshot! It's safe to tell me now," she said with a reassuring nod.

Kizae let out a sigh, looking down at his feet before turning his attention back to the girl.

"Isn't it obvious? My mission…is to kill that Sojin kid!" he stated as Christa's smile dropped from her face. "Are you gonna help me with it?"

The blonde girl took a step back in surprise, before regathering herself.

"S-Sojin? Why?! He's just a medic!" she exclaimed, moving closer to the captive once again. Kizae shrugged.

"I don't know myself. I told you, I just get jobs and do them. No questions asked," he stated. Christa shook her head in annoyance.

"You kill people without even knowing why?!" she exclaimed, a hint of anger in her voice.

"I've gotta support myself somehow," he replied, unfazed by Christa's reaction.

"There are better ways to do that! Get a job, ask a friend….anything besides killing people! Enough humans die without infighting!" she shot back, not falling for such a lame excuse. She let out a sigh, trying to calm herself down. "Well, you were right. I can't help you with that mission."

She paused for a moment, staring the boy in the eye. "However, if you change that mission I can offer you all the support you need," she stated. "We can give you housing, food, and even spending money. I promise it's a life better than killing."

Kizae scoffed, laughing at the girl's offer. "If it's not bad enough knowing that my clients will kill me when I betray them, it's ever worse waiting for you guys to stab me in the back."

Christa shook her head. "We won't betray you! We'll defend you from these 'clients' and look after you as one of us. You've seen how powerful our squad is. We defeated you twice, right?"

Kizae rolled his eyes. "You want me to trust you? Then untie me right now."

Christa hesitated, shooting a look back at Armin. The blonde boy was staring into the forest, probably waiting for the return of the others. She turned her attention back in front of her. Without a word, she raised her sword and sliced through the rope, the bonds falling limply to the floor. Kizae remained still for a moment, unaware of the fact that he was now free. Finally realizing the fact, the boy stared at Christa with wide eyes.

"Are you crazy?" he asked, beginning to run to his right with a laugh.

"I'd wait if I were you," Christa replied, cooly. "The next time Eren and Jean find you, they'll definitely kill you. And _trust_ me, they'll find you."

Kizae froze in place, slowly turning back to face the blonde girl and glaring daggers.

"You can see that I keep my word," she said, pointing to the cut rope. The boy hesitated for a moment before giving in and walking back to the girl.

"Fine…I'll cooperate for now," he replied, crossing his arms.

"That's good! Don't try anything funny….Eren and Jean will chop you down in the blink of an eye. I won't even have time to defend you," Christa replied. "Well…welcome to the team."


End file.
